1. (Technical Field)
The present invention relates to a current detection apparatus mounted in a vehicle, such as a passenger car or a truck, for detecting a charge or discharge current of a battery.
2. (Related Art)
A known current detection apparatus for detecting a current from a battery flowing through a harness, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2011-52998, includes a resistor having a first fixed portion at one end, which is secured and electrically connected to a battery-side wiring, and a second fixed portion at the other end, which is secured and electrically connected to the harness, and a casing for housing a circuit board and the resistor (save for the first and second fixed potions), which is disposed between the first and second fixed portions of the resistor and on a side of the battery.
In the recent automotive field, an increasing number of electronic devices mounted in an engine compartment reduce space in the engine compartment and/or space around the battery. In the disclosed apparatus, however, since the casing accommodating the resistor and the circuit board therein is disposed on a side of the battery, an obstacle on the side of the battery may prevent the casing from being disposed in place on the side of the battery. As a solution, the casing may be displaced along the side of the battery so as not to interfere with the obstacle. This solution, however, may not be desirable. This is because a positional relationship between the first fixed portion secured to the battery-side wiring and a portion of the resistor within the casing may be altered through the displacement and a resistance value of the resistor may thereby be changed, which may lead to significant redesign of the apparatus including redesign of the current detection circuit. Therefore, it is desirable to displace the casing accommodating the resistor and the circuit board therein along the side of the battery so as to avoid interference with the obstacle, without redesigning the current detection circuit.
In consideration of the foregoing, it would therefore be desirable to have a current detection apparatus capable of avoiding interference with an obstacle on a side of a battery without redesigning a current detection circuit.